The high street Anita Garibaldi, beginning from Porta Romana (the last urban gate almost entirely conserved, built in 18th century), is the western entrance to the historic town. The high street traces the lay-out of the ancient Appian Way (still there under the stones “Sanpietrini”) that crossed the whole town and continued in the south. It has been the most important way not only in terms of urbanistic, but also for the society and the commerce, and today is still the point of?greatest concentration of shops and stores. It could be by itself a very interesting touristic and cultural?itinerary. In the first stretch, from Porta Romana to the “Torrioni” (where the first gate, Porta Maggio, was located), apart from the many stores with their medieval structure, it’s possible to see, to the right, the neoclassic “Palazzo dei Forni”, and to the left, on the summit of a beautiful staircase, the church “Del Purgatorio” with its characteristic late baroque façade. On the high street there are also a lot of typical roman houses and medieval places, mansions of the Renaissance and sixteenth-seventeenth century buildings.

Foro Emiliano

The word “forum” indicated, for the citizens of the ancient Rome, the most important square of the town, the place dedicated to the business, the commercial transactions, the religious and political centre. These characteristics are today conserved, because the square is the seat of the municipal building, built in 1959, after the devastating bombing of the World War II, and seat of the cathedral dome of S. Cesareo, meeting place for the citizens and the tourists who look for some relax, out of the chaos of the town in the periods of the highest confluence. However the devastating bombardments of the Word War II allowed to bring to light a lot of archaeological remains of the ancient Forum. Clearly visible are the?ruins of the theatre and the attached portico, the Capitolium, the four faced arch and, mainly, the wonderful original paving of the Forum and a part of the ancient Appian Way.

Camminamento delle Mura antiche

The ancient Volscian-Roman boundary walls (today there are only monumental traces) have been rebuilt in the 5th century AD. At the end of the 18th century, when the town has been demilitarized, a part of the communication trench has been turned into a street and the lateral towers into houses. It’s possible to go trough the communication trench starting from “Porta Nuova”, behind the Forum, where, passing from a tight stairway, there is the access to “Via delle Mura Castellane” and it’s also possible to enjoy the landscape of the hills and the mountains of the north of the town, until reaching the part where the view of the church “Del Purgatorio” offers a close look, highlighting the architectural beauties and, especially, the part where there is the wonderful scenic view of the hills, the “Pianura Pontina” and the sea.

Piazzette storiche

Apart from the monumental and charmed “Piazza Municipio”, there are many other squares?in the historic centre that has been in recent times renovated to give them back the pedestrian use they used to have. All the squares have conserved the medieval charm and the fascination of the modern period, hosting many buildings and historic mansions, most of them renovated. Among the most peculiars there is “Piazza Campo dei Fiori”, with its interesting?Romanesque architectures; the little “Piazza Cancelli”,?with a wonderful example of aristocratic mansion of the?13th century; “Piazza Domitilla”, the only modern square with a historic core, with the façade of the “Palazzo della Bonifica”; “Piazza de Tassis” with the entrance of “Palazzo Braschi”, “Piazza Porta Nuova” with the ancient and medieval surrounding wall; “Piazza Assorati” and “Piazza Cipollata”.

Via della Salita Annunziata

Way”. It was the parish Church of the walled-up village out of the lost “Porta Albina”. The church, now municipal property, conserves a charmed bell tower(its bronze bell is conserved at the Civic Museum) and an elegant stoned portal with a wonderful carved architrave, decorated with a plant volute frieze indicating the name of the author. “Salita dell’Annunziata” was the link, in ancient times, of the historic town with the new one and with the harbour, in the Middle Age the historic town to the village, and in the 18th century, the historic town to “Borgo Pio” and to the renovated harbour. It’s a tiring slope, but once arrived up there, it’s possible to regain energy drinking from the fountain in “Piazza Domitilla”, enjoying the wonderful façade of “Palazzo della Bonifica” (seat, at the end of the 18th century, of the Land Reclamation Authority, it’s been recently renovated),?next to the monumental “Leoni Funerari” (i cavallucci), attraction for the kids. The slope is now a little bit sweeter until “Piazza Municipio”, passing near the remains of the four face arch, where it’s clearly visible the basolato (a particular kind of stone from volcanic rocks) of the Appian Way, that continues on the edges of the square.

Via San Francesco

It’s the longest way that, linking the new town with the one on the east side, joining the Appian Way, goes on until the summit of?the ancient “Tempio di Giove Anxur” (archaeological?and monumental area). Rising, starting from “Piazza dell Repubblica”, it’s possible to see in the “Borgo Pio”, on the right, the dome of the church “S.S. Salvatore” (19th century). Going trough it on foot, in the absence of traffic, when the sun, going down, gives colour to the roofs of the houses, the way gives back the atmosphere of some typical prints of the 18th century. During days with a fresh air and a clean sky, from the San Francesco Way it’s possible to recognize the islands of the archipelago “Pontino” (S.Stefano, Ventotene, Zannone and Ponza) until the island of “Ischia” (the biggest one). Rising on the right, surpassing the “Parco della Rimembranza”, the way is divided into a bifurcation: going straight, the way leads to the mountain, and on the left, the brief stretch on the skids (the old San Francesco Way) links to the “Salita dell’Annunziata” and leads to “Piazza Municipio”.

Via Posterula

The Posterula Way was born as “Rampa Braschi”, at the end of the 17th century, after the wrecking of the late ancient surrounding wall, to link the “Palazzo Braschi”(summer seat of the Pope Pio VI) and the historic centre to the New Appian Way and to Borgo Pio (the new town). The setting-up of Palazzo Braschi involved the whole south face of the “Piazza Grande” (now “Piazza Municipio”), with the restructuring of many historic buildings, as the mansion of the Renaissance De Tassis, the deconsecrated medieval church of “S.Maria in Posterula”, and many other buildings in the ancient square, changed into the “Scuderie Braschi” and into the great “Terrazza del Belvedere”. Today the way has got the same charm that it once had: going through it, possibly before the sunset, when the sun shines on “Palazzo Braschi”, ricreates the atmosphere of the famous painting of J.P. Hackert?of the 1795.